3.25 stars. The Doorman is not ExPats. It is not The Travelers. It is not Two Nights in Lisbon. This is a domestic thriller as opposed to the spy thrillers I've read from him. I miss the spy and the thriller parts of those books. The pacing in this book is slow and uneven. The novel feels like 85-90% set-up for the 10% payoff. Ultimately I liked the overall story, but it really could have used some good editing - we spend too much time in the setup. Too much time in the slow moving, oh my god will this never end part and too little time in the excitement. I really wanted to love this book because I am a fan, but this was not it. I need to thank Net Galley and Farrar, Strous & Giroux for my e-arc.

Much more character-driven than plot-driven, unlike Two Nights in Lisbon, but if you love a character-driven novel, you will enjoy this one for sure. Pavone thumbs his nose at the rich and those who are only involved in social justice issues as an act of performance. Everyone in this novel seems to be set to self destruct and the story is all the better for it.

3 New York stars

This book was such a departure from the books I’ve previously read by Chris Pavone. I have to give him credit for making a shift.

This one shows us what it is like to be a doorman at one of the most elite addresses in New York. We meet Chicky Diaz, the doorman, and get a glimpse into his life and struggles. He’s in serious financial difficulty because of his wife’s crippling medical debt. I grew to root for Chicky.

We also meet the Longworths—Emily, a beautiful woman with a passion for charity work, and her husband, Whit, who has made his money selling body armor. He’s not a very likable character.

There’s time spent on the political climate, and it’s a grim picture. Protests and fear grip New York.

The book's final part reminds me of other Pavone books, with a tense standoff that I had to read carefully.

This one wasn’t what I expected, and took me a while to read, but I'm thinking about it after I’ve finished. I’ll be curious to see what Pavone writes next!

The Doorman is a different sort of book from Chris Pavone. There are no spies or secret agents. Everything happens mostly at the fictional Bohemia building in NYC.

"Chicky Diaz is everyone's favorite doorman at the Bohemia - an exclusive building full of New York's cultural elite. There are affairs, old money and new money that no one wants to really admit where it came from. But tonight Chicky has come to work with a gun. He's on high alert after a run-in with a gangster. Tonight there are demonstrations and counter-demonstrations - people will die and secrets will be revealed."

Lots of social commentary in this book from Pavone. It's from both sides and it's never preachy. It's normal characters discussing what's bothering them. There are more rich people behaving badly. There are blue-collar workers just trying to survive paycheck-to-paycheck. Pavone takes all these characters and weaves them into a story that explodes on a night in NYC. It takes a while to get to it but Pavone keeps the action going to keep you invested the whole time. The ending is wild - and even then you think you know what's going on but Pavone has some surprises for you - even after that night.

A wildly, entertaining story from Pavone.

This was definitely a slow burn for me -- in terms of starting slow then a big crescendo! The narrator was excellent and I found myself enjoying this quite a bit. Interesting premise and great characters. Give it a try!

The Doorman comes out next week on May 20, 2025 and you can purchase HERE.

"Oh," Emily said, the waves crashing over her. "Oh my god."
This was probably the appeal of hard drugs, wasn't it? Feeling the type of good you hadn't known existed. This was Emily's heroin.

Thanks to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the eARC.

I do not know what to say other than "woah". This book gripped me. It was so intense and addressed so many current issues that I was enthralled. I've never read Pavone before but this book really will stick with me.

The Doorman fell quite short of both the synopsis and my expectations. The book included very wealthy people, politics, violence in New York, famous artwork and sex. Pavone went on and on, which made it harder and harder to stick with the book. I finally gave in at about 40% without getting to the heart of the plot.

Thank you to NetGalley, Chris Pavone and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for this advance copy, which will be published May 20. The opinions are purely my own.

The Doorman aims for high-stakes intrigue but mostly stumbles through a slow, overstuffed plot about the exhausting, absurd politics of the ultra-wealthy. Chris Pavone paints a world where privilege protects and manipulates—but instead of sharp critique, we get a plodding parade of hollow power plays and name-droppy excess.

The pacing drags, the characters feel more like caricatures of wealth than people, and the plot buckles under the weight of its own importance. It tries to be timely and clever, but mostly ends up as a slow crawl through a gilded swamp of ego and overcomplication.

For a book about secrets and surveillance, it somehow manages to say very little—just that the rich are ridiculous, and apparently, very boring.

If Succession and Only Murders in the Building had a baby during a blackout, you’d get The Doorman. It’s twisty, timely, and full of secrets behind very expensive doors.

Chicky Diaz, the charming doorman of NYC’s elite Bohemia, sees everything—but tonight, he’s packing heat, and the city’s on fire. Pavone juggles protest, privilege, paranoia, and personal crises with a sharp, stylish pen and just enough bite.

The pacing snaps, the characters pop, and the tension builds like a pressure cooker with a broken release valve. Emily simmers, Julian aches, and Chicky? He’s the glue—and maybe the wildcard.

Smart, fast, and full of heart. I devoured it. #NetGalley #TheDoorman

This book was very disappointing. I was eager to read it because I loved this author's book "Two Nights in Lisbon". However, the mystery and suspense that I was expecting did not show up until the last 10-20% of this story. The storyline became mired in background and character building and eventually seemed like a lengthy diatribe on societal, ethical, and political issues. I'm sorry to say that even though I read this until the very end, it did not appeal to me. This is a book that I will not be recommending.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read a digital ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

The Doorman is an acid criticism of the American way of life, its prejudices against concepts of woke culture, bias against race, social class, gender, law enforcement, and many others. It was sometimes difficult for me to keep reading it, especially because I'm not American (have lived in the US and visited many times) and my culture is different, but I persisted, and found it interesting how the story unfolds at the end. Again double standards, evil is not always evil, good is not always good, everything is fluid...
I thank the author, his publisher, and NetGalley for this ARC.

I was issued this book by NetGalley for my unbiased review.

I must admit that I almost gave up on this book a number of times. Some books reach a simmer and then chug along from there for a bit. This story didn't reach simmering. It was basically developing the story for about 80-85 per cent. The ending was what made it worth its while.

I will admit that I am not a fan of rich people who were born on third base acting like they are all that, and that others are beneath them. This book is loaded with those people. We all know of people like that. A little humility would do them loads of good.

Chris Pavone is a excellent writer, but I didn't think this was his best story.

I have enjoyed all of Pavone’s other works but I could not finish this one. Since I had in the past worked on the other side of Central,Park I have experienced many similar characters and situations in real life and did not want to relive it again. He is a very good writer but I will pass on this subject.

The Doorman by Chris Pavone is one of those books that lured me in with the blurb and the fact that Chris Pavone is a New York Times Bestselling author. For me, it was a frustrating book. Most of it consisted of telling me all about the rich and their life style. The mystery at the end and felt rushed after reading so much about politics and the American caste system (you know what I mean). Getting to the end did make it worth reading because of the mystery, which was a nice little twist.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Farrar, Strauss and Giroux for the opportunity to read The Doorman by Chris Pavone.

See more at http://www.fundinmental.com

Author Chris Pavone has constructed detailed and believable portraits of his characters and the worlds they inhabit in New York. Every nuance and thought is explored as he places these characters within a single, luxury apartment building and lets them loose. THE DOORMAN is similar to BONFIRE OF THE VANITIES, in its fascination with character depth and interaction. Like BONFIRE, there is as much offered to NY inhabitants as there is to skewer them. A deep interest of all things NY is required to really enjoy this work. While the plot is a good one, it takes forever to appear. Pavone has pacing issues with his storytelling and demands that readers just believe the tale will get better, if only they continue. It’s a leap of faith at times. I received my copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

I’d seen Chris Pavone’s name around but hadn’t read anything by him before. I’m so glad I requested this. This is a literary thriller that leans heavily into character study, slow-building tension, and an eventual payoff that makes the ride completely worth it.

This isn’t a typical high-action thriller; instead, it’s a carefully layered story told primarily through the perspectives of three people: Emily, Julian, and the doorman, Chicky. The first 75% is intensely character-driven, but never boring. Pavone gives us intimate access to their thoughts, motivations, and contradictions in a way that felt incredibly rich and real.

Emily, in particular, stood out to me. She’s the kind of wealthy, image-conscious liberal who thinks she’s doing the right thing while continuing to live a life of extravagance and convenience. She’s married to a man she no longer respects, but still prioritizes appearances. On the other hand, Julian is in a quieter existential spiral of aging, restless, and selfish in subtle but impactful ways. And Chicky, the doorman, felt like the moral center in some ways because he was grieving, broke, overwhelmed, but doing his best. Watching their stories unfold and eventually collide was incredibly compelling.

You know from the very beginning that something big is coming, but Pavone keeps the exact nature of that “something” cleverly obscured. When everything does come to a head, it’s chaotic, a little far-fetched, but fully satisfying. I absolutely ate up the setting of an iconic NYC apartment building full of rich, well-known people making terrible decisions behind closed doors. The idea that years of bad choices can spiral and finally catch up to you in one explosive moment is just chef’s kiss.

This book won’t be for everyone; it may feel too slow if you want non-stop action or constant twists. But if you love character-driven suspense, rich people behaving badly, and a slow burn that erupts in the final act, The Doorman delivers.

I’ll definitely be diving into Chris Pavone’s backlist now.

Author Chris Pavone is rapidly becoming one of my favorites. He specializes in intelligent thrillers that flirt with the tropes of spy novels. His work draws comparisons to old-school espionage writers like Ken Follet, Frederick Forsyth, and Robert Ludlum. And even though the plots hum along, they're also deep dives into conflicted, complex characters, usually expats, who wrestle with issues of identity and trust. Set in Paris, Copenhagen, Zurich, Luxembourg, Argentina, and Iceland, they always have a very strong sense of place.

Anyone whose listened to our podcast knows that I love a novel set in an enclosed environment — a manor house, a ship, a (maybe haunted) school, a hotel, and an apartment complex. The Doorman is Pavone's take on the posh-apartment-building-as-setting story, and it's fantastic. Set in one neighborhood, one special building — The Bohemia — it explores the interconnected relationships and backstories of the residents: the privileged and elite... celebrities, finance bros, and other members of the uppercrust. We get an intimate peek inside the lives of the people who literally live at the top — Emily in the penthouse — and eke out a living in the basement. I expect interesting characters and finely-tuned plots from this author. The delightful surprise was the slightly more literary sheen over his prose this time. I'll be pressing this title into everyone's hands this summer.

A page turner with echoes of Bonfire of the Vanities updated to fold in topical arguments about race, gender, medical debt and DEI. Chicky, the doorman at the Bohemia, sees all and knows more but he's got his own problems. Emily is married to Whit, a loathsome master of the universe. Julian is a gentle art dealer who is facing mortality. These three are entwined in ways that I won't spoil because there are some surprises. This moves back and forth in time to tell their stories and culminating in a night of violence on the streets and at the Bohemia. I liked the sly commentary on the New York art scene. The smaller characters (including Whit) such as Mrs Frumm leap off the page. The atmospherics at the Bohemia, the street, the school and so on make this a very New York novel that contrasts the world of the privileged with everyone else. Pavonne is a great storyteller who kept me guessing. And the end was a real wow. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. This is a terrific read.

Before I begin my review, I would like to thank Farrar, Straus and Giroux/MCD and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Chris Pavone nails it again with The Doorman. It’s sharp, fast-paced, and full of twists that kept me hooked from start to finish. I wasn't really sure what to expect going in to this. However, I liked his previous book, Two Nights in Lisbon, so I figured this would be good—and it absolutely delivered. The characters feel real, and I love the atmosphere... what can I say? I'm a sucker for stories about New York. The tension builds in all the right ways. I also have one of his previous books, The Travelers, sitting on my to-read shelf. After this, it’s definitely moving to the top.

Its a slow burn and like Chicky I am all for low key wanting to know what's going on with the people who live in this building, high key weird lol. But once this book got a little too political? it lost me, the book is already a slow burn and I was over it WAY before it ended. It was not for me and that's ok.